Joshua Childer’s father is certainly justified in calling
his son one “tough little bugger.” The three-year-old was recently reunited
with his parents after he wandered off and got lost in the woods for two days.
On Monday morning, while Joshua’s dad was on the phone and
his mom was sleeping, the tot headed out into the Mark Twain Forest surrounding
the Childers’ Missouri home. As soon as they realized he was missing, his
parents alerted authorities, who began a widespread search of the rugged forest
that is home to coyotes, snakes, and bears.
Two days later, as authorities were beginning to lose hope
that Joshua was still alive, a construction worker came across the little boy
lying in a ditch. He called out, “Hey, bud! You ready to go home?” Joshua
nodded and smiled.
Joshua is currently recovering from the ordeal in the
hospital, where is being treated for dehydration and happily chowing down on
hotdogs and milk. It will be so interesting for his parents to see how he describes, if at all, his two days alone in the wilderness. Seeing as how he has come out of the experience physically unscathed, we can reasonably hope that the joy of his return home will be the strongest part of the memory he holds.
Photo: Sky
UPDATE: Family Dog Saves Toddler's Life
